William Allen Blair (born December 18, 1965) is an American former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball and current pitching coach for the West Michigan Whitecaps. Playing career Blair played baseball for Morehead State University before the Toronto Blue Jays drafted him in the 11th round of the 1986 amateur draft. He spent four seasons in the Blue Jays minor league system, playing for the St. Catharines Blue Jays (1986), the Dunedin Blue Jays (1987–1988), the Knoxville Smokies (1988), and the Syracuse Chiefs (1989). Blair made his major league debut with the Blue Jays on April 11, 1990, and spent the season with the major league squad. He was traded in the offseason to the Cleveland Indians for Alex Sanchez, and played in 11 games for the Indians that year. Blair was then traded to the Houston Astros with Eddie Taubensee for Kenny Lofton and Dave Rohde. After a season with Houston, he was picked up by the Colorado Rockies in their expansion draft. After the Rockies (1993–1994), he played for the San Diego Padres (1995–1996), Detroit Tigers (1997, 1999–2001), Arizona Diamondbacks (1998), and New York Mets (1998). His best year was 1997, in which he had 16–8 record and an earned run average (ERA) of 4.17. In 1999, Blair was the starting pitcher for the final Opening Day in Tiger Stadium history. Coaching career He was the pitching coach for the Fort Wayne TinCaps for the 2011 and 2012 seasons, and on December 11, 2012, he was named bullpen coach of the San Diego Padres, replacing Jimmy Jones. On December 2, 2015, Blair was named the pitching coach for the Double-A Erie SeaWolves. He was transferred to the Single-A Whitecaps in December 2018. Blair currently lives in Richmond, Kentucky. References External links Pelota Binaria (Venezuelan Winter League) 1965 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Arizona Diamondbacks players Baseball coaches from Kentucky Baseball players from Kentucky Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Cardenales de Lara players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Cleveland Indians players Colorado Rockies players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Detroit Tigers players Dunedin Blue Jays players Houston Astros players Knoxville Blue Jays players Major League Baseball bullpen coaches Major League Baseball pitchers Minor league baseball coaches Morehead State Eagles baseball players People from Paintsville, Kentucky San Diego Padres coaches San Diego Padres players New York Mets players St. Catharines Blue Jays players Syracuse Chiefs